Rising in the East
by 893
Summary: Immortality was a curse without someone to share it with and she couldn't have picked a better companion. They were in this together—but—they couldn't take on the whole world with just the two of them. Could Kagome trust Souta's newly found vampire brother? ｡ kagome x eric ｡
1. The Sister of my Brother is my friend

Inuyasha © Rumiko Takahashi ► SVM / True Blood © Charlaine Harris / HBO (Book & TV canons mix)

_Kagome x Eric_ ◄ Rated M ◄ _Sorry for any grammatical mistakes. English is not my first language._

**01—The Sister of my Brother is my friend.**

It was a rough start, but life went on after the quest for the Shikon ended. Without any time to say goodbye, the jewel was reabsorbed into her body and, for several heart-stopping moments, Kagome honestly thought she was getting the same fate Naraku had brought upon himself, or worse. The last thing she saw was the panicked faces of her ragtag friends screaming her name, scrambling to save her; even Sesshoumaru looked worried. Shippou's little hand stretched out toward her. Kagome reached back, and then…nothing.

For one horrible moment, she thought she was back in the void again.

But the void didn't have dirt beneath her feet, or a ceiling above her head. Numb, on the verge of a breakdown, she barely made it out of the well house before her knees collapsed. The relief was short-lived. As sweet as the reunion with her modern-day family had been, she quickly discovered the well had closed. Still, Kagome rallied and tried to go on with some semblance of a life.

Getting into high school was hard with the grades she had, but she made it. Without the need for continuous absences this time, and the desire for any distraction, she buried herself in schoolwork and performed better. Every day she checked to see if the portal reopened, and every day it stayed the same. Three years passed and she even got into college. Not in the most prestigious of universities, but given her track record, it was still a big accomplishment. The fact that the face that stared back at her in the mirror looked the same as it did wasn't an issue. Yet. She could've inherited her mother's genes. Mama didn't look old enough to have two kids almost fully-grown. Her father's genetics were no laughing matter either. Grandpa was pushing ninety and still looked sixty.

Life went on and Kagome graduated college. Working as an Office Lady helped pay the bills and allowed her to spoil Souta a little. Despite going their different ways, she managed to stay friends with Yuka, Eri and Ayumi. Melancholy always plagued her when she thought of the closed Bone-Eaters Well, and her friends assumed she'd broken up with her 'two-timing boyfriend'. Hojo remained persistent, but last she heard he was roped into a goukon Eri invited her to but declined. Something good must've happened because they were now dating. Kagome was happy for them.

Every day the well stayed closed broke her heart, but Kagome stayed optimistic. She exercised her skills and tried to master some of the more elusive ones. She kept her senses open to detect even the slightest hints of youki. Vacations took her from one end of Japan to the other, thinking perhaps youkai had moved out of the city and into the wilderness. Aside from the occasional cursed object, she couldn't find any. The legends remained, but as far as she could tell, there were no more youkai. Kagome refused to dwell on the growing evidence, or lack thereof, staring her in the face.

When Souta manifested his own spiritual powers, she took him under her wing and taught him everything she knew. The differences in their power levels was apparent, but her little brother reveled in the lessons. He didn't like using the bow as much as he preferred to use a sword — like Inuyasha did — instead, but she wasn't equipped to teach him. Mama came up with a solution and signed him up for Kendo. Tessaiga it may not have been, but Souta soon learned how to infuse his spiritual ki into shinai, and after that, bokken. He was a quick study, able to channel his power through his hands quicker than his sister first took to get used to.

While the youngest Higurashi flourished under his sister's tutelage, Kagome found comfort in their lessons. She clung to the familiar traditions as a reminder of the past. Before she knew it, routine and normalcy had taken root and were here to stay. It brought a sense of complacency, despite her vigilance in looking for hints of youkai. Wake up early, go to work. Go home, have dinner with family. Learn the family recipes from Mama and listen to more of Grandpa's crazy tales. Sleep in on the weekends and train Souta. And still the Bone-Eaters Well stayed closed.

Tragedy struck on the day Souta graduated high school.

Kagome stopped by a bakery to pick up the cake they'd ordered for the special occasion while Mama, Souta and Grandpa went straight home. Steps light, package cradled carefully, she fairly burst with excitement; she couldn't wait to see the look on her brother's face when she presented him with her graduation gift. She was halfway up the shrine steps when she noticed the auras.

Two.

One stronger than the other…

Not human.

But not youkai either.

Weird, weird, weird, there was something in the air.

A sense of urgency spurred her into action, taking two steps at a time.

She was almost at the top when she heard the screams. Chills skittered down her back when Mama's shout cut halfway through. The blue hue of Souta's powers lit the night along with his pained shout.

And then silence.

The seconds it took her to clear the yard and rush inside the open door were the longest moments of Kagome's life. A sob involuntarily broke through at the sight of Grandpa's body. The unnatural angle and the empty look in his eyes told her everything she needed to know, but she checked for a pulse anyway. Mama was splayed a couple of feet away, buried under the remains of a table. Kagome's legs buckled. She'd seen unspeakable horrors in her jaunt to the past, but nothing could prepare her for the sight of Mama's throat torn out, her blood splattered all over the floor. Her skills as a healer had risen exponentially with the unsealing of her powers and persistent training these past several years, but even the Shikon Miko couldn't heal death.

Worse, she couldn't find or _feel_ Souta anywhere. Her little brother wasn't in the shrine grounds or within her range, as far as she could tell.

The police came and went but couldn't offer any definite answers. It could've been a home invasion, robbery gone wrong, or perhaps it was her brother. That earned the detective a scathing look and a long tirade on how her precious little brother wasn't capable of doing this and a list of all his positive qualities, but Kagome had the impression it didn't help rule Souta out from the police's list of suspects.

"Not until he's found and questioned," they'd told her.

They were going to do their best to find the culprit, they promised. _Culprits_, she'd told them, even though she couldn't give them an explanation — nothing logical beyond she'd felt two distinct auras — not that she told them that; she didn't want to sound crazy. They processed the scene and left.

Kagome held herself together, but just barely. She moved as if she were treading molasses, and nothing anybody told her really made much sense. If it weren't for the fact that Souta was still missing, she would've rattled apart. Only the hope that he was still alive kept her going.

Mama and Grandpa were gone, but she wasn't giving up on her little brother. Souta was strong, he was a fighter, and Higurashi were bred tough. He fought the attackers, she just wasn't fast enough to lend him help. If only she'd picked up that cake when Mama had asked her to and didn't procrastinate until the last moment. If only she was a few minutes earlier. If only she'd climbed those steps faster… If only, if only, if only.

Each day that passed without a sign of Souta was agony. The funeral came and went yet Kagome didn't allow herself to mourn. She existed mechanically, holding on to her sanity by a thin thread. Going to work daily was no longer an option; bless Mama's pragmatism and her insistence on getting life insurance for both her and Grandpa.

On the sixth week of her own personal hell, bone-weary from another unsuccessful quest to find her little brother, she came home to a surprise.

Half-dead on her feet, she was halfway to her bedroom when she felt a familiar aura. No…it couldn't be… "Souta?" she whispered, half-afraid to hope. She made it to her brother's bedroom on jelly legs.

A dark shape huddled on the foot of the bed. It flinched when she turned the light on.

"Souta!" her voice cracked. She hurried forward to embrace him, but he held up a hand to ward her off.

"NO!" he scuttled away from her. "Nee-chan, don't come any closer!"

She blinked, "What? Why?! I haven't seen you in more than a month! I thought you were dead…like…like…" she swallowed, eyes filling with tears. "I looked everywhere for you! I was so worried! What—What's wrong with you?" Kagome squinted, "You feel…different." Blue eyes like hers met her gaze. "Oh my god, what's wrong with your eyes?!"

"Stop! Don't come any closer! Damn it, nee-chan—"

Kagome was too distracted to pay attention to whatever her little brother was saying. He looked like he was crying, but instead of tears, _blood_ dripped from his eyes.

They reached for each other at the same time; she wanted to give him a hug and prove he wasn't just a figment of her imagination. There was a flash of fangs, pain in her neck, and then…oblivion.

—o—

Consciousness returned with Souta sobbing over her body, red tears raining on her face. Clutching her like a lifeline, her bones protested his grip as he rocked back and forth.

"No, no, no no no I didn't mean to do it. I warned her I couldn't control myself, I just wanted to see her, I thought it would be okay, now I have nothing left, no no no no no I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm so sorry," he mumbled repeatedly.

"Little brother, I can't breathe. Ease up a— Ow, you little twerp!" she yelped when Souta dropped her. Her skull bounced on the wooden floor, another bump to add to her growing collection. "Do you _want_ me to be a walking bruise!?"

"You're alive!" dried blood caked all over his face plus his dumbfounded expression made him look absolutely demented.

"No, I'm a ghost sent to torment you for the rest of your days," she deadpanned. "_Duh_, of course I am! What else did you think I'd be?!"

"But I killed you!"

"No," she said gently, "Mama and Grandpa are gone, but I'm still here, Souta." It was difficult, but she managed to talk around the lump in her throat. "It'll be hard to get used to life without them, but at least we still have each other, right? And when the time comes, _we'll hunt down the bastards that did this and make them pay_. I promise to do a better job protecting you this time," she ran her hand through his hair in a soothing gesture. "I failed you once and I won't fail you again, I promise. Did you get a look at your attackers? It'll help, but don't worry if you didn't, I'm sure we can figure something out. Are _you_ alright, though? Did you pick up a disease while they held you? Your face is a mess. Your eyes are bleeding and…did you bite your tongue or something? When was the last time you had a bath?"

"You're alive," he repeated, as if in a daze. "I_ killed_ you, I couldn't control myself, I—" he shook his head, "But you're okay. I can feel you."

Kagome tried not to get too annoyed as he poked and prodded her face.

"I can _feel_ you! You're real! I'm not dreaming this time!" he laughed.

"What are you babbling about, Souta? You're not making sense!"

Sobering, he swallowed. "Nee-chan…something happened to me…I've changed—I…"

And that was how Kagome found out for a fact that youkai weren't the only race of supernaturals in the world.

Given Souta's new handicap, they decided keeping mum about the truth was the best course of action. Walking into the police station to report what really happened, if they weren't branded crazy, was a Bad Idea. He looked to be in perfect health, for someone who was held captive by deranged murderers for over a month. The police were bound to get suspicious if he could only answer their summons after the sun set; the 'sun allergy' excuse would be stretching it if he suddenly burst into flames. And Souta was still the primary suspect despite it all. There were no other fingerprints found on the scene, and the police didn't have any other leads. Kagome herself had been under scrutiny, but further investigation could find nothing to pin against her, and their evidence only pointed to Souta.

His new diet also posed a problem.

Looking up vampire myths on the internet didn't help. Conflicting reports caused more headaches than solutions. Even Souta's popculture knowledge didn't help—trivia ranged from daywalkers to vampires that sparkled. One thing that stood out though, was their need for blood. Traumatized by his sister's death at his own hands—no matter how many times she shook her head and pointed out that she was very much alive—he refused to drink from her again. Undaunted, Kagome improvised by purchasing pig and cow blood until all the butchers knew her as _that girl who's too fond of nam tok/haejangguk/dinuguan/insert other blood-based food here._

His taste buds didn't seem to have any preference, blood was blood. Regular food was still preferable, but Kagome insisted on supplementing his diet with red liquid, unwilling to take the risk. It was like getting Shippou to eat his vegetables.

"No."

Kagome frowned and held up her wrist, "Come on, Souta."

"No!"

"Quit being a baby."

He sent her a glare that would've curdled milk. "I'm not being a baby, I'm—"

"Scared?" his sister supplied helpfully.

"Yes! I don't want to hurt you!"

Kagome's frustration melted away. "I understand. But you won't. I trust you."

"I wish I had all the strengths of a vampire and none of the weaknesses!" Souta sighed. "Then it wouldn't be so— _What the heck!?_"

His sister was glowing. Not with the pink aura he'd grown used to, but a bright white light.

"Nee-chan?" he swallowed a little nervously. Her eyes were wide open, the bright light blinding, but nobody was home.

For the second time in Souta's short life, he knew unbearable pain.

—o—

The New Year's Eve party at Fangtasia was winding down, but Eric Northman greeted the new year with his usual amount of boredom. The threat of witches promised to spice things up a bit, but not by much. After a thousand years, it was getting harder and harder to find good entertainment these days. The most excitement he'd had in centuries was courtesy of the plucky telepath from the backwoods of the boonies several weeks ago, with their 'adventures' in Mississippi. Everything else paled in comparison.

The Vampire Sheriff of Louisiana's Area Five was forced to reevaluate his opinion thirty minutes later.

A tingling on his senses brought his attention to the doorway. It couldn't be…Appius? Here?! No…it wasn't his Maker, upon closer inspection of the bond. The link was there and it wasn't his Father, but it was _familial_, that much he could tell. He knew the moment his Child, felt the pull; Pam scanned the crowd with a furrow on her brow. If it wasn't his progeny, or his sire…could it be? He'd been an only child when he broke free from Appius, and that had been centuries ago; they hadn't had contact ever since. He had no personal experience to fall on, but he felt it in his blood…his _sibling _was here.

With that startling revelation came a tantalizing scent. For a moment, he thought the delectable Sookie Stackhouse had paid him a visit—but no, it wasn't her. The busty blonde smelled sweet and addicting; the aroma that currently teased his senses held the promise of _ambrosia_. Unlimited power, all for him. All he had to do was take it. One taste and he could conquer the world.

Eric blinked, shaking his head to clear the cobwebs away.

_What the hell just happened?_

Witches?

No. There was no magic in the air.

The discovery of a sibling was messing with his mind. His Sibling walked into his line of sight before he could form another thought.

Well.

He wasn't sure what exactly he expected. Beyond being _male_, he didn't really know or put any thought into contemplating what type his Maker was into, but the boy who returned his stare probably looked as startled as he felt. And he was just that—a boy. Eric wasn't sure if he was even of legal age when he was turned, he looked so young and fresh-faced. A veritable innocent, for someone who shared a maker with him. Speaking of which, where was Ocella?

Eric vacated his throne, subtly motioning Pam to take his place, fully expecting his brother to follow. Once inside his office, he was surprised to see a young woman follow them both into the room and shut the door behind her. In the smaller confines without the stench of others to distract him, he smelled the full brunt of her scent. Saliva pooled in the back of his mouth and his fangs involuntarily descended.

The boy moved, quick as lightning, and blocked her from his view, showing signs of tension for the first time.

The thousand-year-old vampire had to take a moment to retract his fangs, holding up his hands in a placating gesture. "I mean you or your pet no harm." _For now._

"She's not my pet, she's my sister," the boy scowled.

Eric's lips quirked. "Forgive me, where are my manners—Let's start from the beginning. My name is Eric Northman, Sheriff of Area Five. We seem to share a maker; I admit, I'm curious. Where _is_ Appius Livius Ocella? I haven't seen him in centuries and he's never deigned to visit before."

The girl, barely visible from behind her brother who was a head taller than her, looked a little annoyed at having to stand behind him. A half step allowed her to peek at him, and he soon saw the similarities between the siblings. Their eyes were their most startling trait—a rare blue for two of obviously Japanese descent. Both look guarded, but a little hopeful.

"Answer me this first before we say anything more—_Are you fond of your maker?_ Without the bond, if you had the power to, would you _end_ him?"

Eric stared at him with a gimlet eye. "You come into my territory, barely start a conversation with me, haven't really bothered to introduce yourself, and yet expect me to answer such a question?" Who the hell did this boy think he was?!

"I'm sorry for offending you, but it is imperative for us to know," he gave a deep bow. "If you do not wish to answer, I understand. I won't push you. Please accept my apologies, and we could be on our way."

Did he really think Eric would let them go that easily? After he'd gotten a whiff of his sister and the boy himself was an enigma?

"Did Appius send you? Is this some sort of a test?"

"No, he didn't. This is purely for our curiosity."

Eric deliberated. On one hand, the brat should learn his place and the pecking order of things. He could refuse to answer and then hold them against their will until his curiosity was satisfied. On the other hand… "There is no love lost between me and Appius. He turned me against my will and forced me to stay with him for centuries. As soon as he let me go, I placed as much distance as I could between the two of us. I doubt I could end him, with or without the bond, he is much older and is very powerful. As my sire, I will weep for his passing, but I am not entirely opposed to urging it along so that I could truly be free."

He looked at each of their faces, noting the slight easing of tension in their bodies.

"My name is Higurashi Souta, and this is my sister Kagome," the boy drew his attention away from the sister. "We were just passing by when I felt a pull on my vampire bond. We thought it might be my maker, so we came to investigate. I didn't expect to find a—" hands gestured as if to help him look for the appropriate word.

"Brother?" Eric helpfully supplied.

"Is that what you are? The correct term for what we are?" Souta motioned between them.

"Yes, we are vampire siblings. Didn't Appius teach you?"

The dark look that crossed Souta's face was mirrored in his sister's. "I didn't stay with him long enough for him to teach me that."

Well wasn't this a night for surprises. "Really? How old were you when you were turned?"

"Eighteen."

"How long have you been a vampire?"

He shrugged, "Close to ten years now."

"How long did you stay with our maker?"

"Roughly six weeks."

Eric's eyebrows attempted to launched themselves from his forehead and into his hairline. "He let you go after _six weeks_?"

Souta smiled with grim satisfaction. "No, I escaped. It wasn't my first attempt, just the first successful one. He kept me in iron restraints, but Alexei was giving him fits and I used the distraction to attack. I killed Alexei and injured Appius enough to cause him to flee."

Eric didn't even know where to start—"Alexei?"

"Our _other_ brother, now permanently deceased."

What sounded suspiciously like 'May he rot in hell' was mumbled from his companion.

"How could _you_ have injured our sire?" Eric was a little over a thousand years old, but he had no delusions about being a match against Appius, maker or not.

The guarded expression was back. "I was…strong…for a newborn."

That didn't explain anything. "And the bond between maker and child? Didn't he command you to stop? How were you able to overpower him enough to cause him to run?" Nothing made sense and he was sure they were keeping something Very Important from him. His new vampire little brother looked ready to bolt at any second.

"Did you get any new abilities, aside from the usual vampire package, when you were turned?" Kagome joined the conversation. "Or heard of others who have?"

"It's not unheard of, but not that common, and some are more useful than others."

She moved to stand beside her brother. "Our family comes from a long line of Shinto priests and shrine maidens; we can trace our lineage back to demon slayers."

"Demon?"

"Not like the ones in the Christian Bible—but _youkai_," Kagome worried her bottom lip. "They are supernatural creatures of legend, the closest I could think of in comparison would probably be the fairies of European folklore."

He nodded.

"Once in a while, to give the ordinary humans a fighting chance, people are born with certain…powers. Some call it _holy_—speculating it's a gift from the gods, others saying it might be because the power comes from a person's soul—but whatever the origin, it's very useful to use in a fight against preternatural beings."

Like vampires.

"So you're saying that you retained these powers even after you turned?"

"I think it might've been a factor," Souta's bangs flopped against his forehead when he nodded, "but I don't know for sure… I'm not sure if it was because of my powers or because Alexei demanded too much of his energy and attention, but he couldn't command me. Turning also…evolved…my empathic abilities. I could only sense auras and stuff like truth, lies, evil or taint before, but when I was turned it extended to moods."

Eric's eyes widened. "Is that why you asked…"

The little brat shrugged unapologetically.

One thousand years, give or take, and he'd never heard of such a thing, so the skepticism was understandable.

Souta's demonstration raised the hairs all over his body. It only took a moment to hold a hand up and cause it to glow blue. If he wasn't sitting down, he would've taken a step back. The urge to recoil was strong—whatever it was, he had no doubt it could do him damage.

"I'd offer to use it on you or a test subject of your choice, but I can tell you it _bloody hurts_."

Kagome huffed.

"Can you do that, too?" Eric asked.

She nodded. "Yes, I trained him."

And this was the tricky part. Kagome and Souta both knew that lying would only come back to bite them in the buns later on, but they couldn't tell anyone _all_ of their secrets either. They had a huge row after row about it, until they reached a compromise. Appius learned first hand about Souta's powers as a human and a vamp, so they couldn't deny it. Putting it out in the open also didn't make Kagome's own abilities stand out _too much_. It was hereditary and therefore normal. Souta was more than willing to paint a bigger target on his back if it would divert attention from his sister. There was also a watered-down, edited version of the Shikon Story waiting in the works to explain Kagome's condition, but they were keeping that in the back burner for now. They didn't need it until people started noticing her non-aging; that could be decades from now, for all they knew.

One thing they both agreed on though—keep the Wishing part a secret. No need to open that can of worms. Ever.

"Is that why you smell divine?"

"Excuse me?" both Higurashis blinked.

"Your ability to channel energy—whatever you call it—Does it have any effect on your physiology? I admit, I'm _very_ curious to taste your blood. You smell absolutely mouth-watering, and I've had faeries," he addressed Kagome. He turned to Souta, "Don't tell me you haven't noticed?"

"No," he looked taken aback.

"Your scent is muted, and all but overwhelmed when standing next to her, but it's still there. I could understand what drew Appius to you."

"I didn't realize…" he shook his head, "But you're wrong. It wasn't Appius I attracted at first, it was Alexei."

"Oh? Do tell."

His new brother regaled him with a tale that started with the deaths of their mother and grandfather at the hands of a fallen Russian prince-turned-vampire, his escape from their Maker, and ended with their story about starting a new life in America in the advent of the Great Reveal. They traveled a lot and weren't that up to date with the new world that Souta now belonged to. He lived on the very fringes of their society and was as clueless as a newborn, his sister the only and constant companion. He didn't know much about vampire etiquette, only learning from gossip and experience. The boy wasn't even sure if he was officially registered as a vampire. They were miraculously lucky to have survived basically unscathed for so long.

Eric took pity on him.

"You can stay here and I could mentor you, if you'd like," his lips quirked. "We're family, after all."

The offer was tempting but—"My sister…"

"Is welcome too, of course," he smiled. "The sister of my brother is my friend."

Pam knocked twice and opened the door. "I'm sorry to interrupt your meeting, but one of the witches is here with a message from Hallow and insisted on seeing you immediately, _or else_," she sneered disgustedly.

"Send her in," Eric rolled his eyes.

Pam's gaze slid over to his current guests, "Should I—?"

"It's fine."

One of the witch underlings entered with Chow in tow. One witch against three vampires—the new brother and his sister didn't count—seemed a tad overkill, but Pam and Chow were taking the threats harder than he was and were set on presenting a united front no matter what. Safety in numbers and all that.

The witch started haughtily, without preamble, "Hallow is willing to change the terms and offer you her protection in exchange for you becoming her consort. She has heard stories of your prowess in bed and is willing to—"

"I would rather bathe in filth," Eric cut her off.

She blinked rapidly, "You didn't even let me finish—"

"I don't need to hear anything more, my answer is still the same. I don't negotiate with witches. Go back to Hallow and tell her to get the hell out of my Area or she'll have a war on her hands."

The witch puffed up like an offended cat. "You'll regret this, you filthy bloodsucker!" she spat. "No one refuses Hallow, _no one_!"

"Don't talk to him like that, you worm!" Chow snapped, breaking the witch's neck in a heartbeat.

As shocked as she was at the sudden turn of events, Kagome reacted quickly when a charge sizzled in the air and headed directly for Eric. Before it could hit and do who-knows-what, she erected a bubble around the corpse, and a barrier around her brother's newly-found vampire-brother. As far as vampires went, the tall blond seemed pretty decent, and she couldn't detect any malice on him. Devious he might've seemed, but he wasn't evil. It'd be bad if something happened to him before they got to know him better and found out more about Appius, too.

Unfortunately, she didn't think to cast the same protection on Chow, and when the energy hit the bubble that now encased him along with the dead witch, it bounced back onto him. Kagome could only stare in slack-jawed astonishment as the other Japanese vampire blinked out of existence after he got zapped.

"Oops," her face went up in flames. "I didn't mean—I'm sorry I—I didn't have time—" she swallowed nervously. "You guys know I didn't do that on purpose, right? I didn't know it would do that, I only acted on instinct, oh god." So much for finally getting a break. They looked strong, but Kagome was confident she and Souta could fight their way out of the office. They could fight their way out of the _bar_, but she wasn't worried about that. In order to make it out safely they'd have to fight without the gloves on and risk exposure. Anger rose to the forefront, aimed at the witch who wanted her very own vampire sex toy and caused all of this. Of all the rotten luck…

"That could've been me," Eric stared at the spot where Chow had vanished.

"What do you think it did?" Pam mused, morbidly curious. "Did he disintegrate?"

Kagome whimpered.

"It might've been just a displacement spell," Souta glared at the female vampire.

She scrutinized him in return, "Who are you again?"

"Pam, meet my little brother and your new uncle, Souta," Eric stymied the posturing, "and his sister Kagome. They'll be staying with us for a while. Kagome, don't worry about Chow. If he's alive, we'll find him. You spared me his fate, thank you," he was glad it wasn't him. _Better him than me._ Forestalling any questions his child had, he ordered, "It's almost closing time, go supervise."

High heels stomped petulantly but did as told.

Eric opened a mini-fridge full of blood bags, "What type do you prefer?"

Souta eyed the selection with big eyes, "Uh…thank you, but I've already had dinner."

"That's all you're going to eat?" Kagome's face reflected sympathy.

He shrugged, "Until the witch debacle is over, I can't be too sure about any potential donors. Especially not after the stunt they just pulled."

Only a little hesitation showed on her face when she held up her wrist and offered, "You could feed from me, if you'd like."

Eric froze, a bag of AB negative in his hands. His mind had worked nonstop, devising ways of how he could get a taste of her blood the entire time they'd been talking. To have her offer without him even needing to ask… It couldn't be _that _easy…could it? She didn't look like a fangbanger, but no normal person just offered to feed a vampire out of the goodness of their hearts. But then again, looks could be deceiving.

"Are you sure?" he asked with a nonchalance he didn't feel.

Wavy dark hair framing a porcelain face bobbed, lifting her wrist higher.

Slowly, so as not to look too eager, he placed the bag back in the fridge, closed it, and reached for her, using the offered wrist to pull her down on his lap as he sat back on the sofa.

She landed with a squeak, stammering in a high-pitched voice, "What are you doing?!"

"Vampire saliva numbs the area in preparation for the bite," that bit of new tidbit for the Higurashi siblings was murmured against her neck.

"That tickles!" wiggling did not help calm the growing hardness in his pants. "Why can't you just bite from the wrist like—oooh!"

A myriad of flavors burst onto his tongue, his eyes closing in rapture.

The hand that wasn't cradling her head explored everywhere he could touch. Down her back, taking a detour to squeeze her behind before it traveled over the back of one calf, adjusting her in a straddling position. It continued its journey up her inner thighs, under the skirt of her dress, only to be thwarted by her leggings. Undaunted, it reached higher. Her bra proved an easier opponent and was easily pushed aside to give him access to a bountiful breast.

Sookie Stackhouse smelled wonderful and tasted divine, even with maenad poison lacing her blood. Eric also had more than a handful of faeries in the course of his life, the rarest of delicacies. Faerie blood was an aphrodisiac and a drug to vampires, the scent alone was known to cause a frenzy and a mere drop could prove addicting. The red liquid he was currently gulping mouthfuls of, however, eclipsed all of that.

Delicious. Heavenly. Perfection…Ngggh.

Lightning and sugar and sunshine and light.

Everything he'd ever wanted and anything he'd ever dreamed of…

Mere words couldn't give it any justice.

To say that faeries tasted like turd-covered dirt in comparison was a vast understatement. Unlike fae blood though, it didn't send him into a mindless frenzy, reduced to acting like a beast concerned only about draining the source. Eric was very much in control of his senses, and he needed more friction. His hand very reluctantly gave up the soft mound it'd been fondling and slid down, retracing its steps to her butt, pushing her down as he grinded up.

Yes.

Once.

Twice.

Just a few more, he was on the precipice. It'd been centuries since he'd felt like an untrained wet-behind-the-ears youth, and he didn't care.

Close.

So close.

Yes, right—

"_Gross!"_ Souta pronounced the word as if it was plagued with cooties and snot.

Kagome snapped out of her daze and tried to scramble off his lap, but she was no match for his iron grip. Calling out his name proved to be ineffective, and slapping his shoulders only caused her palms to throb.

Eric disengaged his fangs from her neck with a yelp. "Did you just _poke_ me?!" Souta was right, it bloody freaking _hurt_.

She wiggled the offending finger at him, no longer charged with energy. "I had to get your attention somehow!"

"You had his attention, alright," Souta drawled, dripping with innuendo.

Kagome made another unsuccessful attempt to get off his lap, but he held fast, citing the need for cleanup and unwilling to waste perfectly good blood. The risk of getting zapped was totally worth the renewed bout of giggling and wriggling; she was very ticklish.

_Huh. _

He puzzled over the lack of puncture marks on her neck, thinking he didn't injure her too badly at the abrupt withdrawal, after all. Hopping off, she turned twenty shades of red and avoided eye contact as she righted her clothing.

"That's never happened before," Kagome was proud her voice only cracked slightly.

"You've fed other vampires before?" Eric didn't understand why the question left a bitter taste in his mouth.

A delicate shoulder rose and fell, "Only Souta. He wouldn't feed from anyone otherwise, and I have to force him to take from me as it is. I was afraid he'd waste away from hunger during the first few years. He was a picky eater, even as a human."

Eric's fists unclenched. "You feed from your sister?"

"She nags and nags and nags. I tried to survive on animal blood when we passed more wildlife, but she was picky about the meat while I was picky about the smell." Blue eyes a shade lighter than his sister's rolled, "I think she was offended that I'd rather drink from an animal than her, too. You wouldn't believe how long she pouted."

Blasphemy! Was he a moron, or were his taste buds dead? Or maybe the kid was fucking with him. Any vampire in his right mind wouldn't pass up the feast that still left a pleasurable taste in his mouth for animal blood. _No way in hell._ His new brother had a weird sense of humor.

"Do you have a place to stay?" changing topics, Eric decided not to fall for his jokes.

"We were planning to stay in a motel for the night, but if we're staying in the area, maybe we can start looking for an apartment tomorrow," Kagome tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"Nonsense, you'll stay with me," his mouth offered before the rest of him had any say in it.

"Oh are we?" she arched a brow.

"Until the witches are taken care of, all vampires in my area are at risk. Only the four of us know right now, but word of Souta's progeny will eventually leak. As my bloodkin, they'll go after him first and hardest. I've been keeping Pam close these last few nights myself. Safety in numbers and all that."

The Higurashis exchanged a quick speaking look.

"Makes sense," the boy shrugged.

"We thank you for your generosity," she inclined her head gracefully.

"Your things?"

"We stashed it on the roof of a building nearby."

Good thing vampires didn't get wrinkles, his forehead and eyebrows were getting a good workout tonight. "Lead the way," he informed Pam of their errand on the way out.

Their destination was a building several blocks away from Fangtasia. Electricity sizzled whenever he accidentally on purpose brushed his fingers against Kagome's legs that were half-straddling the center console of his corvette while she half-sat on her brother's lap, finding every excuse to shift gears.

"So…" Souta asked as they exited the car, "do _you_ have any special powers you would like to share with the class? Did you get any when you were turned?"

Staring at the decrepit façade, Eric wondered if they could retrieve their things without the structure falling on their heads. "I can fly," he replied without an ounce of humility. Don't let it be said that he didn't have anything to bring to the table.

"Really?" Souta's blue eyes were bright and wide. "Is that like a hereditary trait in our…vampire line…? Can Appius fly, too?"

"Not that I know of, no. Why do you ask?"

"Oh," his enthusiasm dimmed, just as his sister crowed.

"Ha!" her face glowed like a feline that had just one-upped a canine, "I was right!"

"I'm almost afraid to ask," he admitted.

"He can do it, too. He's been claiming it was part of the vampire package or something vampire-related, but I _knew_ the little twerp got it from me," Kagome smirked.

Struggling with the urge to lean down and cover her lips with his, he asked instead, _"Got it from you?"_

"I knew of youkai who could fly using youki—that is, demonic energy. There was this guy who preferred to ride on a visible condensed cloud of his youki, very flashy." A slight breeze ruffled her long wavy locks as she ascended. "I thought I could replicate it, only with reiryoku—that is, spiritual power—and less flash," she grinned, looking Eric at eye-level. "The little turd wouldn't admit it was my idea, and not another one of his vampire-given gifts."

As he took to the sky, Souta responded with a loud raspberry.

Shaking his head at his new little brother's maturity, he levitated after them. "Aren't you concerned someone might see us?" _Up_ seemed to be their only destination.

Souta shook his head, "No, there isn't a soul for miles."

"Vampire hearing isn't perfect," it seemed he had _a lot _to teach the kid. "There are a lot of ways to get around it and there's always someone else who is stealthier than your enhanced senses."

The boy blinked, "Huh?" and then—"Oh! Yeah, no…not that super senses aren't great and all, but we use Pesquisa to—"

"No we don't." Kagome turned to Eric to explain, "Basically, we can sense souls within the surrounding area, a Soul Radar, if you will—"

"But my terms sound cooler!" he pouted.

Rolling her eyes, she shook her head, "If Sesshoumaru ever heard you say he rides a Flying Nimbus, he'd eviscerate you."

"But—"

"Your otaku is showing." That shut him up enough for her to continue, "And we chose this area specifically because of the lack of security cameras. So don't worry, we're safe."

Arriving at the rooftop, the siblings floated over to retrieve their luggage and Souta's wrapped collection of weapons. Carrying Kagome's duffel and a huge yellow monstrosity of a backpack for her, he inquired, "Can you sense all souls or just human ones?"

Her look was that of pure understanding. "All, including vampires. Most sentient living beings have souls, even the 'undead'. We think that's why Souta retained his spiritual power, too. We're from the school of thought that the power comes from the soul, and he wouldn't be able to use it if he didn't have one."

"Most?"

"Some reanimated clay zombies are soulless before they manage to steal that of their reincarnation's, but even after they fully revive, they could only continue 'living' by feeding on more souls of innocent people," was her cryptic reply.

Food for thought.

Eric was silent on the drive to one of his safehouses. As a human, he hadn't been the religious type. Even less so when he turned. If God or gods existed was never a thought that plagued his mind, but the question of having a soul might've been a topic that had, once or twice. Could he trust his new acquaintance on what she said? How could she be so sure? Did it even matter if it was true or not? A secret part of him, one he wouldn't reveal even under the threat of sunrise, wanted it to be. He didn't want to explore that desire any deeper though.

—o—

"He likes you," Souta, splayed on her bed, told her as she got out of the bathroom.

"Who?" Kagome finished toweling and started combing her hair. The hot shower had been great, but she wondered if she could try out the large tub tomorrow. She'd have to go out and get some bubblebath…

"You know who," he shot her a knowing look. "Don't worry, I put up a sound barrier so we're free to talk."

The conversation was also in Japanese, but she didn't know if Eric or Pam—who arrived after the Higurashi siblings were each given their own room, then said hi long enough until she and her maker had to go prepare for dawn—knew the language.

"Well that's good, isn't it? Since he's your vampire brother and all, that makes him family now."

Souta rolled over and stared at her with a gimlet eye. "I mean he _likes you_ likes you."

Curse her knack for blushing at the drop of a hat! "W-What!? Why would you think that?!"

Black eyebrows were raised high. "You were dry humping each o—"

"That was an accident!" Shaky fingers started on her nightly moisturizing ritual. Non-aging or not, she didn't want to risk dry, flaky skin.

"Didn't seem like an accident to me," he muttered.

Blue eyes rolled, "_Normal_ vampires always have that reaction when they feed, they both said so. Don't judge the rest of them by your freakish ways."

"I've been monitoring their moods pretty closely tonight, and he_ liked_ you even when you weren't feeding him."

"I'm sure he felt grateful he didn't have to eat out of a bag."

"He liked you from the moment he laid his eyes on you. I thought for a moment I'd have to fight him off those first few seconds in his office."

"That's 'cause he thinks I smell," blue eyes rolled.

"Why are you in denial over this?" his brow furrowed.

She sighed, "I'm not in denial, I'm being realistic."

"Realistic?"

"Do you honestly think someone like Eric would give someone like me a second look if I weren't the only person he could safely snack on?" she snorted. "You're seeing something that isn't there. He likes me because I'm his vampire brother's human sibling, nothing more. I'm not his type."

"Eh? What do you think his 'type' is?"

"I dunno, but maybe along the lines of beautiful busty blonde or anyone supermodel-like, but _definitely_ not me."

Huffing at his bangs, he flopped back on the bed. Inuyasha was his childhood hero, but sometimes, Souta _wished _they could meet each other again so that he could punch him in the face. Details were hard to come by, but he knew enough to figure out that the half-demon did something—a lot of things—to severely damage his sister's confidence. Intentional or not, the effects were deep and long-lasting. As a brother, he preferred his beloved sister to remain innocent in matters regarding the male gender, but sometimes, it almost _hurt_ to see her obliviousness. Not all men were as persistent as Hojo or—judging from her stories—as outspoken as Kouga, and his sister classified anyone who didn't act like those two extreme examples as Not Interested or vying for the friend zone. Hilarious to watch and yet tragic at the same time. He was probably never gonna get Higurashi nieces and/or nephews.

Leaving it off for now, he changed topics. "So how cool am I for wishing for us to have the ability of All Speak, huh?"

"Stop calling it that!" Kagome giggled, "You are such a dork!"

"Come on, admit it!" using his vampire speed, he tackled her and held her as a tickle-hostage until she relented.

"Alright! You win!" she gasped between laughs, "It _is_ nice not to worry about language barriers anymore, and to not have someone remark on our accent or lack thereof every time we open our mouths."

"Nice?" he wiggled his fingers threateningly.

Kagome smacked them away, "Fine, fine! COOL! It's _cool_, you dweeb!"

Basking on his victory, he sobered the next. "I like him. He's no pussycat, but I get the feeling we can trust him. Pam doesn't seem too bad either," he added almost begrudgingly.

"I do, too," she agreed with a small, hopeful smile. "I think we can finally set some roots down." After all this time.

She almost didn't hear his reply, he mulled it over for almost a minute, and when it came, it was a soft, "Yeah…"

—o—

After a good night's rest, she woke up disoriented, staring at the unfamiliar ceiling for several moments before she remembered where she was. Face washed, barely awake, she stumbled into the kitchen hoping to find some grub. Losing her way twice in the way, a note on the counter greeted her, her name scrawled in an unfamiliar script. A business card fell off when she unfolded to read:

_Kagome,_

_I asked my day man to stock the fridge and cupboards full of groceries, enough to last for a while. Please help yourself to them as a token of my appreciation for your defense last night. If you need anything else, feel free to give Bobby a call and give him your instructions._

_E_

There were all sorts of foods and ingredients, none of them for a Japanese breakfast (despite it being well past lunchtime), but she wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. The scent of bacon finally lured Souta out of his bedroom.

"No rice?" looking around, he snagged a piece of bacon.

Turning another in the pan, she replied, "Nope, but we have toast and tamagoyaki."

"Yes!" he crowed, snagging a plate she gave him and loaded up. "It's been too long since we've had one of these!"

Halfway through their meal, a familiar charge filled the air, raising the hairs on the back of their necks. Kagome felt an instinctive urge to clamp tight on her soul, and warily looked around for a stray soul-stealer or two. _Crash!_ Souta's cup of tea slipped from his fingers and met the floor. Icy tendrils of fear gripped her heart.

Souta's eyes were glazed, face slack. But then, like fur rippling across his skin, his reiatsu flared out, fighting off whatever it was that had held him captive. "Nee-chan…" he blinked rapidly, a bit disoriented.

"Are you okay?"

Shaking his head to erase the last of the spell away, he said, "Yeah. What was that though?"

A door opened above stairs, and then another. The sound of bodies falling to the floor galvanized them both.

"Nee-chan, stay here!" he zipped ahead, not waiting for an answer.

Like hell. No way was she letting her baby brother face whatever it was on the second floor alone. She took off running, taking two steps at a time.

"What's going on?!" came Souta's voice as she turned a corner.

Pam was crawling on the floor, and Eric was unsteadily on his feet, clutching the railings for support. Both shaking as if they struggled with their own bodies to move forward.

"Sunlight…get me…outside…" the blonde vampire female slurred, barely awake. Perfectly manicured nails clawed the floor, pushing her body reluctantly forward.

"What!" Souta screeched. "Have you gone crazy?!"

"Witches!" Eric hissed as he took one teetering step after another. Despite his hands' death grip on the baluster, his feet won the battle to drag his body. "Casting spell to force us to meet sun," the effort to speak sapped whatever strength he'd been using to fight off the voices echoing in the air, commanding him to do their bidding. Step, step, step. Go outside, it's daylight.

"Oh crap," Kagome realized what was happening with wide eyes. "Souta, see to Pam! I'll take care of Eric!" she caught up to him halfway down the stairs. A pink barrier prevented him from taking another step. Thwarted, he tried to push against it with his palms, earning burns. Oh no. "Stay!" she hurried back upstairs, running to her room. Going straight for her calligraphy kit, she took two pieces of paper, years of practice and experience allowing her to brush long and elegant strokes despite shaky hands. Imbuing it with power and hoping it'll work, she sneaked up behind Eric and stuck it on his back.

He fell like a log, falling face-first into her barrier. Concerned with the way his skin sizzled, the barrier dispelled, but she hadn't anticipated what happened next.

Thump.

Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump.

Like a lumpy mattress, he slid down the rest of the stairs, face first. Immobile from shock, Kagome could only watch in horror. Thankfully, the blinds were still closed in this part of the house. Probably twice her mass, she huffed and puffed and finally succeeded in rolling him over after several tries. The burns on his face were slowly healing and he'd lost that glazed look in his eyes. Relief almost brought tears to her own, and the panicked hysteria bubbled over, escaping in giggles. It worked!

"A little help here!" Souta called from upstairs.

"I'll be right back," she promised Eric with a comforting pat on the hand.

Repeating the same process for Pam, she stuck the ofuda on her chest this time. Souta caught her, carrying her to his sister's room. They laid Eric beside his child, waiting with bated breath for any more surprises. After a few tense minutes, the heavy atmosphere lifted. Considerably older than his progeny, Eric managed to stay awake longer, but eventually succumbed to the pull of day death.

"Let's wait until after sunset to take the ofuda off," she eyed the napping vampires warily. "Go finish your breakfast, I'll take first watch."

Very reluctantly he went, keeping the door wide open and all his senses on alert in case of emergency. At least one of them kept vigil at all times, and sunset couldn't come soon enough. When the last rays from the sun disappeared, Souta lifted his vampire brother and ripped the ofuda off. Eric's eyes popped open, and he followed Souta's actions with an eagle eye.

Satisfied that neither he nor Pam were harmed, he queried, "What did you do to us?"

Kagome launched into a detailed explanation of ofuda, ending with, "Grandpa was very fond of using them. Though, they might or might've not worked all the time."

He was fascinated with the process, but he had something more important to discuss right now. "Was I just hallucinating or did Souta not die for the day?"

The Higurashi siblings froze.

"If you lie to me, I shall be very cross."

"I-Is that not normal?" Kagome's voice was a tad high-pitched. Between Souta's natural oddities and Wish-related 'blessings', it was hard to keep track of the things that would shock normal vampires. And due to having little to no contact with the vampire/supernatural community, they didn't have any practice.

"No," both Pam and Eric replied.

Souta sighed. In for a penny, in for a pound. "I don't die for the day, I get to choose when to rest. I could stay awake for days, but I do get cranky if I don't get my beauty sleep."

"Why didn't you tell me this last night?"

"You don't really expect us to tell you _all_ of our secrets, do you?" Kagome crossed her arms defensively. "We've known each other less than twenty-four hours and we've already told you more than we have anybody else. I doubt _you_ have shared everything there is to know about yourself."

"I am older than Souta and Sheriff of this area. It is my responsibility to assess if something or some_one_ poses a threat to my constituents. If you're hiding something as big as this, it makes me wonder what else you're keeping a secret, and it makes me question how trust-worthy you are. As his elder, he should've given me full-disclosure."

He realized he'd stepped over the line when two pairs of hurt blue eyes stared at him. Even his child looked at him with disapproval.

"I see," Kagome nodded curtly. "Trust needs to be earned. We might not have bared our souls to you, but already we've saved your life _twice_. As easily as you were incapacitated, you'd think we would've done whatever dastardly deed you think we're capable of doing while you were immobile, but we didn't. I thought Souta could benefit from learning from you, but if this is how we're going to be treated, then no thank you. I appreciate you putting us up for the night." She turned to Souta. "Get your things, we're leaving."

"But—"

"We'll find you another vampire mentor, don't worry."

"No!" Eric leaped off the bed. Shit. That escalated rather quickly. "That didn't come out right. I didn't— It's not that you're untrustworthy— I don't think you are, that came out wrong." Cursing his verbal diarrhea, he looked her in the eye and said, "I'm sorry. You're right, you've already saved my life twice—that we know of. I was out of line to accuse you of duplicity just because you didn't tell me everything. You've proven trustworthy so far, you didn't deserve this. I have no excuse, but please, don't leave. Souta is powerful for one so young, but that doesn't mean he's immune to the rules of our kind, and he has so much to learn. Vampire politics are tricky. I can help him with that."

Tense silence enveloped the room. Thankfully, vampires were incapable of sweating. An eternity of seconds passed.

"I guess I'd have the same reaction after what just happened…" The hard look slowly disappeared from her eyes. "I'd probably lash out at the nearest target too if I got the scare that you did."

Scared? He wasn't scared! But not about to put his foot in his mouth again, he settled on biting his tongue instead.

"Speaking of which," Souta switched topics before someone put his or her mouth in their foot again, "What the heck happened earlier? What on earth was that?!"

"Necromancy," Eric's face darkened. "It seems that our renegade witches are dabbling in necromantic magic as well. It's rare, and it gives the user absolute power over the undead, including vampires."

"What I'd like to know, is why _you_ weren't affected?" Pam drawled, quirking a brow at Souta. "You were lucid, while we were both under their thrall."

He fumbled with his neckline, pulling out a small rectangular piece of wood attached to a length of intricately knotted cord. Pam and Eric stared at the foreign inscription, unable to make heads or tails of the unfamiliar language. "What is it?"

"Omamori, a protective amulet. This one is specifically designed to ward off ill will," Souta supplied helpfully. "Nee-chan made it herself, and I carry it with me at all times. I felt the spell attempt to take hold, but it—sputtered—and I was able to shake it off."

"Useful," Eric eyed it with a covetous gleam.

"I have one too, but it's made by Souta. It's better if it's given as a gift, sort of like wallets," Kagome added. "We should make some for them," she told her brother, "and maybe…" she turned to Eric, "some for your constituents as well? We only have materials for a handful of wooden pendants and it takes a bit more time carving them, but we could whip up simple omamori tonight if you could spare some fabric."

"I have just the thing," Pam volunteered.

Souta nodded, "Good. We'll need paper, fabric and cord—or ribbons would do, too. I'll go make them because I'm faster, but we'll have nee-chan bless them so they'll be more effective. Grandpa wanted me to be a Shinto priest, but…" his voice trailed off as he followed Pam.

Quiet as a church mouse, sitting on the bed, Eric watched Kagome prepare her own materials. Armed with her handy-dandy calligraphy set—an item that he would never underestimate again—she made short work of inscribing two pieces of smooth wood. Strips of paracord were threaded through the holes and tied in complicated knots. Several hair-raising moments later and the pendants were blessed.

"Omamori normally need to be renewed each year, but these come from the Sacred God Tree on our shrine back home," she handed him one. "We found out by happy accident that the wood is a perfect receptacle for the blessing, almost like it's still alive despite not being attached to the tree anymore, and we only need to renew the charge instead of replacing the entire thing. We've speculated that customization factors into it, too."

"Thank you," something tangible brushed against him, and he could swear a layer of protective film coated his entire body before it disappeared into his skin when he slipped it over his neck. "Was that…"

"You felt it?" she smiled, pleased, busy with ink and paper.

"What are you doing now?"

"These are for your club," she explained when she finished, handing him a pair of sealed envelopes. "To ward off ill will, and invite good luck and prosperity." And another ward against ill will —"You can never have too many!"— but this time, "For your home, plus a charm for good health. Display them on your highest shelf, above eye-level at least. Never open them, or else they'll lose their potency. Next year, if we're still here, give it back and I'll give you new ones in return. If we're not, don't throw them in the trash, burn them instead."

_If? _Of course they'll be here next year. Nothing short of true death in an apocalypse would prevent him from doing all he can to make them want to stay with him now.

Forever.

Huh. The concept didn't send his mind skittering away like he thought it would, fancy that.

Even more surprising, she showed no signs of holding a grudge, his earlier foot-in-mouth incident all forgiven and forgotten. Humility, wasn't an emotion he was used to.

"Are you hungry?"

For her? "Always."

"It might be wise to feed now, to keep your strength up in case you have to do battle later. And you can always have some again if you get hungry before bed," she went to him wrist offered again.

With Herculean effort, he restrained himself—just barely. "I shouldn't, I fed from you yesterday and you probably fed Souta today, too." It sounded like a weak protest even to his ears.

"I heal fast, don't worry. I've been feeding Souta everyday for ten years without any side-effects. But um," she stammered when he reached for her, "C-can you bite on the wrist or somewhere else instead? We don't want a repeat of what happened last night…"

"But I prefer the taste of blood from the neck," with sad eyes and a pout, he lied with a straight face.

"O-oh," the nervous bottom lip-biting was back. "Maybe if I face the other way…"

Back to chest he sat her down in front of him, fangs already descended at the thought of another taste. Hunger wasn't an issue. Over time he required less and less blood, a gulp or two every other night enough to sustain him. Last night he'd had more than enough to glut himself for a month, but this wasn't about feeding. At the core, he was an opportunist, and he wasn't about to pass up some intimate contact. A thousand-year-old vampire Sheriff he may be, but he wasn't above copping a feel or two.

Last night wasn't a fluke. Unable to fight the pleasure, his eyes rolled to the back of his head. Never had his body spiraled so out of control before. Drowning in indescribable sensation, his hands roamed, one to cup a breast, the other disappearing beneath her skirt. She wore a different one tonight, and without leggings to hinder this time, his fingers pushed the flimsy barrier of her panties aside and touched her slit. Wet already? Good. Small hands blindly grabbed his, but seemed undecided if they wanted to push him away or draw him closer. Coated with enough moisture, his middle finger slid in.

Shit. So tight. In and out he pumped, mimicking the motions as he rubbed his hard length against her back. Despite the layers of clothing separating them, he could feel her heat, smell the arousal that pulsed around his digit. Faster and faster, adding a second finger. Small whimpering sounds emerged from her throat, heating his blood. Fangs detached from her neck, replaced by licking and sucking.

Twin moans reverberated as they fell off the precipice.

He could tell the moment she regained her senses — her body tensed, clenching around his finger. Slowly, reluctantly withdrawing, he asked nonchalantly, "There's something different about you…" tugging her closer to sniff her hair. "What happened to your scent?"

Embarrassment still coloring her face, she fairly leaped out of his arms when he released his grip, fumbling with her skirt, unable to look him in the eye, "Oh, that. You mentioned it last night, so I put an extra strong scent-masking spell, just to be safe."

"You don't have to be embarrassed," he spoke, casually licking her juices that still lingered on his fingers. "Your brother aside, feeding and fucking go hand in hand for vampires." Mmmm. Delicious.

"Stop that!" eyes wide, she tugged on his arm ineffectually.

He chuckled. Tiny and cute, and so adorably shy. Unable to resist, he leaned down to—

"Ugh! Can't I leave you two alone for five seconds without you going at it like horny rabbits?" Face in a disgusted grimace, Souta returned carrying a box. Pam, carrying a similar package, followed. Scenting the air, she sent a knowing look at her maker.

Kagome huffed irritably, "Shut up!"

Dodging the pillow thrown at him, he set his burden on the bed, motioning for Pam to do the same. Omamori blessed, Kagome turned to the female vamp. "Are you hungry?"

"No!" Eric growled.

"You can tell if she's hungry?" Kagome blinked.

"No, she's not going to feed from you," he clarified.

Her brows lifted. "Why not?"

"Because you're Mine."

"Excuse me?!"

"As I've said, Souta is strong for a young vampire. But he's an unknown, he still has to build a reputation. If anyone takes an interest in you, they would challenge him. He could protect you, he could win against challengers, but he has to win _each and every time_. How many do you think would be interested in the power that you could wield?"

"We could still leave," their brother, the cockblock, offered.

"And then you'll be back to square one. Sheer dumb luck allowed you to fly under the radar so far, but how long will that last? A year-old vampire knows more supernatural etiquette than you do." When they both remained silent, he continued, "If you were Mine, you will have a level of protection from random upstarts. If you belong to a Sheriff, it will also grant you some protection against the Queen."

"Queen?"

"In the US, each State is ruled by a monarch. The battle for territory is never ending and bloody. One King or Queen could hold as many States as they want, if they're strong enough to hold on to them. Each State is divided into Areas, in which monarchs appoint Sheriffs to oversee. Louisiana has a Queen, Sophie Anne Leclerq. If she wants you, she will have to send a request through me. She might still try to poach an asset that she deems valuable enough, but what would be the point if you already belong to one of her Sheriffs?"

Not the entire truth, but he'd learned his lesson not to push his luck. Already he'd taken advantage of her twice; if he told her she'd be _His_, i.e. her lover in every sense of the word soon enough, she'd probably bolt and run. Human females were funny like that. No, he'd learned from experience. Patience.

"As a vampire sibling far younger than I, in the absence of our maker, it would not be out of place for him to seek my protection for himself and for his sister. Technically, she would be my Pet—" he held a hand up to forestall their protests, "—and some vampires share their pets. _I_ do not, but Souta is a special circumstance and will be 'allowed' to continue feeding from you. Pam, however, is not."

"I don't want to be a Pet," she huffed irritably.

"It's just a technical term, Kagome. In public, you will have to follow certain protocol just like everyone else, but it will be for your own protection."

"I'm capable of protecting myself. And my brother."

"I didn't say you weren't. You and your brother are more capable than a lot of vampires I know who are many times your age. But this isn't about that. This is about doing what's best for you, but most especially for your brother. Will you really deny him the opportunities opened to him?"

"Of course not!"

Staying silent, he waited for her to come to her own conclusions.

"Nee-chan, you don't have to do this just because of me—"

"No, he's right," her head shook. "I've dragged you on this selfish quest, and what do we have to show after ten years?"

"You didn't drag me, I was a willing participant."

"I'm your big sister, it's my job to look out for you. _I should've known better._" As a vampire, Souta's life expectancy was relatively infinite. And—as selfish as it was—having tested her own lack of mortality this past decade, she was glad there was at least one good thing to come out of this tragedy. Immortality was a curse without someone to share it with and she couldn't have picked a better companion. They were in this together—but—they couldn't take on the whole world with just the two of them.

Ten years have been wasted in their journey for vengeance and they were still no closer to Appius. The bastard was slicker than a greased piglet and a master at hiding. For reasons unknown, Wishing didn't help. Variations from wanting more clues, to having him right in front of them so they could assist him on his way to a final death, to outright asking for his permanent demise didn't work. None of the light show which signaled fulfillment of the wish—_or anything at all_—happened. Nothing. Nada. Zip. Thinking it was a one-time deal, frustrated at the difficulty they faced each time they journeyed to a different country, Souta asked for the gift of all languages for the both of them _as a lark_—and it was granted. Yet all Appius-related wishes remained unfulfilled.

Wish granting also took a heavy toll on Kagome, so they treaded very carefully, yet extensive experimentation failed to find any logic in how the Jewel worked. Simple, complicated, little, and big. No rhyme or reason, like a demented hybrid between Russian roulette and a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get and sometimes as painful as a shot to the head.

Japan no longer felt like home. A bulk of their insurance money was set aside for Shrine maintenance, a distant relation put in charge. Every year they visited incognito, and every year the well stayed closed. What else did they have left? Each other—and that was all the home they needed.

But they couldn't live outside the rules. Not anymore. Sooner or later their secrets were going to come out, one way or another. How many more years could they sacrifice with no results? Eric represented a fountain of opportunities for Souta, a way in to this world he now belonged to that she knew nothing about, and who was she to stand in his way? She'd held him back long enough.

"Okay," she nodded decisively. "What do I need to do?"


	2. No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

**02 — No Good Deed Goes Unpunished**

Fangtasia was packed with vampires when they arrived. A cacophony of voices rose up as everyone started talking at once, vying for his attention. Curious stares were thrown Kagome's way, but Souta discouraged them with a glare.

Stepping on the platform for his 'throne', he stared at his minions until the mob slowly quieted.

"The witches pose a bigger threat than we initially thought. Last night, they sent a booby-trapped witch whom Chow fell prey to. Today during daylight, we had a number of casualties due to a spell they cast. I suspect they have a necromancer in their coven; what happened earlier is similar to one that happened centuries ago." He held up a hand to staunch the growing murmurs. "Fortunately, we have a way to combat the problem this time around." Grabbing an amulet, he held it aloft. "This is an omamori, specifically one to ward off ill will. It has already proven to be capable of warding off necromantic energy and enabled Souta here," he indicated the boy, "to be free of the terrible curse that forced some of us to meet the sun."

"I've never seen that kid before," a random vampire in the crowd said. "Who is he?"

"He is my little brother," Eric replied. "And this is his sister, Kagome. She is Mine."

Not even crickets dared to make a sound.

"You will be given one omamori each. It will be effective for a year, but never open it or else it'll lose its magic. When the year is done, return it to us or burn it, do not throw it away in the trash. Keep it with you at all times—you never know when you might need it. The first one is free and there're a few extra, but if you want more than one, it'll cost you fifty each," he announced.

"Where did you get them?" another random vamp queried.

"My little brother and his sister made them."

"Why should we waste money on a child's elementary art project?" the walking excrement, Bill Compton, snarked from the back of the crowd.

"We all know how worthless _you_ are, but most of us consider our lives more than, or worth at least, fifty dollars." Eric sighed with an exaggerated roll of his eyes. "We haven't tested it against other forms of witchcraft, but with a necromancer on the loose and witches dabbling in necromancy, don't you think at least _some_ protection is better than none? Don't tell me you actually enjoy being powerless against that branch of witchery? _I know I don't._"

"How do we know it's legit?"

"Kagome is a miko and has personally blessed the amulets."

"Are you going to tell us she's _certified_?" a bald Asian vampire in the front sneered.

"I don't need to be certified to harness spiritual power," Kagome's sweet smile bellied the flaring pressure that followed. "You can say that it runs in the family."

All the vampires in the front row took a step back. Most of them didn't know what a miko was—or spiritual power, for that matter—but their instincts screamed 'Danger!' at the energy displayed.

"Holy shit!" another vamp with spiky hair, on the left side of the room, exclaimed. "The Sheriff found himself an honest-to-goodness miko? I can't believe it! I thought they were extinct!?"

"We would be happy to provide a demonstration," Souta unleashed his own spiritual pressure, a contrasting blue to his sister's pink.

"B-but you're a vampire!" Spiky goggled at him.

"So are you," Souta's eyebrow lifted.

"And you can still— that's incredible—I've never heard—" Spiky's disbelief rendered him incoherent.

It seemed like Baldie didn't need further convincing after that. "I would like ten more extra, please," he eyed the box in Pam's hand. "Enough for my maker, children, and other incidentals."

Spiky placed his own order, and several enthusiastically elbowed their way to Pam, vying for attention. Their urgency rippled across the crowd, prompting the others into action.

"Settle down, there's enough for everybody!" Pam snarled.

"But I want extra, like those guys!"

Vampires, devolved into a bunch of preschoolers, pushed and shoved their way forward, the crowd rapidly turning into a mob. Outnumbered, Pam slowly backed away, protectively clutching her box. One redheaded female reached a greedy hand forward and came away with burns.

"Form a line and get your one allotted in an orderly manner, _or you will get none at all_. You can buy your extras after everybody has one," voice as cold as his eyes, Souta announced, a translucent blue shield shimmering around him and Pam.

Eric nodded in approval. "I've sent a search & recon team. We will launch a counterattack no later than tomorrow evening. If you would like to volunteer, contact my Second."

Clancy, his redheaded bar manager, came up to whisper in his ear. Leaving Pam and Souta to their own devices, he took Kagome to his office. A hulk of a were and his favorite telepath were waiting inside the room, talking in low voices.

"To what do I owe this visit?" he said after introductions were made, but the two females were more fascinated with each other than anything else.

"What are you?" Sookie asked, looking at the smaller girl in single-minded curiosity.

Head cocked to the side, brow furrowed in thought, Kagome easily replied, "One hundred percent human, unlike you."

Heads whipped to look at her in surprise. How could she tell? Eric knew there was something _other_ about Sookie, but he had no idea what.

Alcide stepped in from of the blonde female protectively. "Liking them a little young these days, aren't you, Sheriff?"

Kagome looked up, up, and up—_he was so tall!_ And probably at least thrice her body mass. "You might think I look young, but I'm older than you, _boyo_."

"What did you mean by that? I'm not a hundred percent human?" Sookie's eyes were wide as saucers.

"There's something in your aura…it's sort of similar to something I've seen before in half-humans. Yours…it's not exactly half—more like at least a couple generations removed. Mmm… something elemental. Air and sky."

"What are you talking about, lady?" Alcide scoffed. "Elemental and air and sky and auras. What do you think you are, some kind of psychic?"

"I never said anything about being psychic, wolf." Blue eyes narrowed at him.

"Wha—How'd you—" his mouth opened and closed. Unable to form words, he stared daggers at Eric instead. "What have you been telling her, blabbermouth?"

"I haven't told her anything, Herveaux. She figured it out all by herself. My Pet has many talents."

"You say you're human, and I'm a telepath, but I can't read your mind at all. You're not a void like the vampires, but I can't get a single peep out of you."

"You can read minds?" Kagome's face lit up with honest awe. "I spend a lot of time with an empath and have learned to shield or else he could tell when I'm hungry or even when I need to go to the bathroom," she shuddered in remembrance. "I've never met a telepath before, but I guess my shields hold up to mind-reading, too."

"As fascinating as this conversation is, did you come here just to interrogate me and mine or did you actually have some kind of purpose?"

Sookie looked unwilling to halt the current flow of their discussion, but Alcide was ready to get down to business. "The leader of the coven that's trying to move in on your turf isn't just a witch—she and her brother are also weres, and they're trying to usurp Pack territory, too. They've already taken out a few of our members, including our Beta today."

Reluctantly dragging her gaze from the smaller girl, Sookie continued, "Lafayette didn't come home last night and when Tara went to find him, she got sucked into their weird cult, too. They said he has some kind of valuable power they could use against vampires and added him to their group whether he wanted to join or not. At first they kept him there by force, but now they've got Tara as leverage. She was able to sneak a hysterical phone call to me today but as far as she could tell, the witches are jacked up on V. It gives them an extra punch, and doubly so for their leader Marnie Stonebrook—who goes by Hallow, her brother Mark, and his wife Antonia, a powerful witch who is also very talented in necromancy."

"As if _one_ necromancer wasn't enough," Eric muttered disgustedly.

"Lafayette gave them a big power boost and they decided to take him out for a test drive."

"Must've been a heck of a power boost," Alcide whistled. "It's all over the fucking news."

An almost magnetic charge prevented Eric from replying. _Fuck, not again._ Familiar tendrils reached for his mind, vying for control. But as he braced himself for impact, the spell faltered, sliding completely off. Echoes of chanting still lingered in the air, but he no longer felt the need to obey them.

Glassy-eyed look gone, he turned to Kagome. "Your brother was right—it sputtered!" unable to contain his excitement, he picked her up, spun her around, and planted a sound smack on her lips. Uncaring of his gaping audience, he zipped to the main floor, clutching his new favorite person in his arms. "It worked!" he announced to the room full of vampires.

No one paid him any attention.

"Settle down! Settle down!" a besieged Souta snapped from the stage. "We've ran out of omamori for tonight, but_ come back tomorrow if you still want some. We'll make more!_" the last part was said in a shout, to be heard above the uproar. "All of you already have at least one each, that should be enough! _As we all just experienced first-hand. _Don't be greedy, keep it with you at all times and you're covered." Face getting darker, he added, "And if you don't stop acting like infants, I'll make sure you _never_ get one _ever again_. And just so you know, stealing someone else's stash reverses the effect. Instead of protection, you invite curses—I'm looking at you, Goatee."

An exaggeration, but it was enough to catch the crowd's attention, and they followed his narrowed gaze to a goateed vamp whose hand hovered over Spiky's bag of loot.

Spiky gasped. "Why you—!"

"My name's not Goat—urk!" Spiky's hand latched on to his windpipe.

"Take it outside!" Souta ordered, looking like a thundercloud.

Bemused, Eric nodded at Pam and zipped back to his office. "Your brother is quite a little dictator."

Head bobbing weakly, Kagome wobbled to the couch. "Warn me first next time you do that. I need to brace myself or else my stomach tries to rebel."

Sending Eric and Kagome surreptitious glances—which were ignored—Alcide cleared his throat. "As I was saying—before that _exciting_ interruption—thanks to Sookie, the Pack sniffed out their hideout. We're ready to go, but Colonel Flood thought you vamps might want in on the action, especially after today."

A slow, calculating smile lifted the corner of Eric's mouth.

—o—

Kagome listened with half an ear as plans were made. Souta was in the thick of it, listening attentively to everything that came out of his brother's mouth, occasionally offering suggestions. Already, she could see how attached he was getting to the taller blond. Growing up without a father, he had a tendency towards hero-worshipping older brother-figures, and Eric seemed a perfect fit for the role. Tall, handsome, with hair prettier than hers. Sigh. She hadn't seen such a fine specimen of manhood since Sesshoumaru. If only Souta's delusions were true.

_Haha, as if._

Shaking out of her daydreams, she made her own preparations for the assault on the coven. The SUV was big enough to fit the four of them—Kagome riding shotgun, Pam and Souta at the back with Clancy the bar manager, and another vampire named Thalia. Extremely standoffish, but Souta kept trying to include her in the conversation anyway. In the rearview mirror, Kagome could see her pick at the piece of paper stuck to her chest—clearly skeptical at its supposed effectiveness despite what she'd witnessed earlier.

"Experimental," Souta and Kagome called it. The pendants and amulets were nice and would last a whole year, but they'd brainstormed and created some doodles on paper that would—hopefully—provide a one-time-use shield for their assault party. Untested, they had no clue how it would hold up to the witches' magic, but nothing ventured, nothing gained. Thalia wasn't the only guinea pig who received it with doubt, but obediently did what their Sheriff told them.

An abandoned warehouse was the coven's base, and they had to park a couple of blocks away to avoid detection. A ward surrounded the perimeter, preventing supernaturals from entry. Bubba—a decades-old vampire who looked suspiciously like a certain King of Rock n' Roll, Sookie—the only other human, Kagome—human or not wards and shields and the like never seemed to work on her anyway, and Souta—who had the same talent as his sister's to a certain degree—were the only ones able to cross. A quick debate settled the argument of who was going to do what, and Kagome took off with Sookie and Bubba while Souta stayed behind.

When Sookie and Bubba sneaked off to rescue Tara and Lafayette, Kagome floated up to the rafters, scouting for the best position to use her arrows. Defense and long-range attacks were her specialty, while Souta excelled on offense and short-range battles. Though he owned a few well-cared for katana, he only ever used his wooden swords, further leaning more towards the shinai than his bokuto, stating—_rather arrogantly_, she kept telling him with an accompanying eyeroll—that his precious blades were overkill for 'mere mortals'. Like her bow, his weapons were formidable when infused with spiritual energy, but he found wood to be a better conductor than metal.

Bubba was assigned the task of zipping back to the assault force when Sookie and her friends were out of harm's way—Souta's cue to break the wards and allow the combined forces of weres and vampires to attack the witches, but the battle itself was rather…easy. Arrows rained from above, quick and precise. The coven packed a strong deadly punch with their magic, but the paper shields worked, _to an extent_—deflecting spells, giving the were or vampire enough time to get up close and deal damage and/or death—although they got less effective, the more abuse they took, burning little by little at each spell that landed. But by the time the papers disintegrated completely, the battle was drawing to a close. The number of combatants were fairly even, but the witches relied heavily on magic. Speed, agility, stamina and sheer ruthlessness tipped the scales for the weres and vampires. Antonia's necromancy wasn't as potent without Lafayette and was rendered useless by the protective pendants. Hallow and Mark, as both magical and were, put up a good fight and lasted the longest, but the odds were stacked against them. Without the Higurashi siblings, perhaps the battle would've been more even, with numerous casualties on both sides. But the duo tipped the scales, and it was a _massacre_. Whatever injuries the weres and vampires sustained were superficial at best.

It was rather anti-climactic.

"Nice job," bloodlust still lingered, a hazy sheen over his blue eyes when Eric nodded at Kagome.

Refusing to look at the body she knew had an arrow embedded in the forehead, Kagome nodded in acknowledgment. Maybe it was a testament to the sad, lonely life they'd lived since _that night_ years ago, but no longer was she the helpless schoolgirl of the past. Youkai, vampire, were, witch, human, alien or whatever else lurked in a dark alley waiting to attack—they were met with no mercy if they threatened her family. She avoided looking closely at the carnage that littered the warehouse floor, though. Merciless she may be, but there was still a squeamish part of her that shied away from yucky, squishy things like exposed viscera, bugs and other creepy crawlies.

Feeling like a big fat juicy steak being eyed by a starved pitbull, Kagome looked around. Pam was loudly complaining to Souta, berating him for staining her clothes. Souta argued it wasn't his fault the coven wasn't made of sterner stuff. He'd only tried his techniques on vampires intent on taking a bite of his sister before, and they tended to burn and/or disintegrate. How was he supposed to know witches and were-witches/warlocks exploded like piñatas?

Clancy found several vampires in silver, wasting away as their blood slowly drained from their bodies and into blood bags. Among them was Chow, looking emaciated but relieved his ordeal was over. Ignoring the pleading looks from Bill, Sookie was having a tearful reunion with two people who could only be Lafayette and Tara, a stone-faced Alcide standing guard. Eric barked rapid orders and the combined crew systematically erased all evidence of the battle.

Crashing from the adrenaline rush, Kagome found a spot to sit on. Her legs dangled on one side of the crate, but it was the nearest clean surface. Unease skittered in her belly at the glances she received.

"You've earned their respect," explained Eric as he leaned on her crate. "Nobody thought those little pieces of paper would work, but even Thalia is a believer now. If we'd known how effective they were, we wouldn't have needed the weres' assistance. We could've taken them out on our own."

Butterflies fluttered in her tummy at his undivided attention. "I dunno…they packed a lot of magic. We probably would've won in the end, but not without losing several limbs." Unable to hold his gaze for too long, she dropped her own, examining, "Were you hurt anywhere?"

Making room in between her legs, he tilted her chin up. "I'm not sure. I need a volunteer to do a full body inspection. You up for it?"

Eyes wide, Kagome could only gape as his face drew closer. Although she'd assumed that kissing and sex were part of the package when one became a vampire's pet, there'd been _no_ mention of it when Eric explained the particulars of their arrangement earlier. _Their_ master-pet relationship was anything but normal, and she thought he wasn't interested in _that_. Yes, every time he fed he copped a feel and more, but she chalked it up to reflex. Like a vampire version of Miroku, flirting was probably second nature to him, and his vampiric instincts only exacerbated his urges. He'd never initiated a kiss or anything remotely sexual out of the blue before, sans feeding. It never occurred to her that he might be interested; she wasn't delusional. Maybe he was just leaning closer to whisper?

Mmm, nope. Soft lips slanted over hers decisively. _Were you hit with a stray lust spell?_ she wanted to ask, but couldn't speak around the tongue that slipped passed her open lips to duel with hers. Licking and sucking and teasing little nips, just enough time to allow her to take a breath before returning to explore the cavern of her mouth. Insides melting, her world narrowed down to the two of them. The man was an expert kisser.

"_Ugh,_ _not again_—GET A ROOM, you two!"

Abruptly shoving away from him, she accidentally bit down hard enough to draw blood. "Oh my gosh, are you okay? I'm so sorry!"

Eric licked his bloody lips, eyes sparkling. "It's fine, already healed—see?"

Ignoring Souta's fake retching sounds, they shared another kiss. Short, with copious amounts of tongue, she was too dizzy with pleasure to notice the faint tang of blood. Limbs the consistency of goo, she was thankful she was sitting down, but a hole to crawl into would've been much appreciated when she discovered their audience. Every gaze in the warehouse was centered on them—except for Souta's, which were shielded behind his hands as he loudly protested the abuse to his poor innocent eyes. Some looked utterly gobsmacked, like that…what was his name again? Average height, dark hair, walked around like he owned the place while having a stick in his arse and always shot moony eyes at Sookie…Phil? Will? And speaking of whom…the telepath and her two friends, plus Alcide had that same wide-eyed expression, too.

Not for the first time Kagome wondered if there was some history between Sookie and Eric that she didn't know about. She didn't see Eric give the busty blonde longing emo looks like that other vamp who sounded like a bad extra from Gone With the Wind, but what did she know? Ex-girlfriend, maybe? The looks she kept receiving from Sookie's inner circle were too loaded to be pure curiosity.

Not that it mattered anyway.

At this point, she'd settle for figuring out what the Sheriff wanted. Did he kiss her because he was high from victory and somehow credited her for that, or something else? As much as she loved his kisses and attention, she'd have to set some ground rules if they were going to be around each other a lot. She wasn't willing to risk a potential friendship and Souta's chances just because his male perfection sent her hormones into a riot.

Pretending indifference to their observers, she checked Pam and Souta for injuries.

"I'm fine, _mom_," Souta ineffectually ducked her grabby hands. As payback for his teasing, she made sure to fuss over him more than necessary.

"Just minor scratches, but everyone emerged relatively unscathed," Pam reported. "The worst of the lot are the vampires they've been draining. They'll recover eventually, but it'll be a long process for some. Chow was among the lucky ones. If I knew it was going to be this easy I would've just sit this one out to save my wardrobe."

"That one tried to kill Sookie," Souta stared poison at a tall, athletic-looking young woman with short black hair and a narrow face who was nursing her right arm in the corner. "She's lucky I only broke her bones."

"You missed all the drama," Pam drawled. "Alcide found out what Debbie did in Mississippi and abjured her."

"She locked Sookie in a trunk of a car with a starving vampire," Souta supplied helpfully for his sister who was out of the loop. "_She's really shady_," he switched to Japanese. "_I offered to ward Sookie's house in the guise of escorting her home. I don't trust the were not to try to finish the job when she gets Sookie alone._"

"How will you get home?" she asked in English.

"Pam will take the SUV. You and I will hitch a ride with the others," Eric replied, having been briefed by Pam.

Aside from the pints of vampire blood, the only other objects of value they found were various spellbooks. There were no magic practitioners in their group who could make use of them, but Eric commandeered half and sent the rest to Colonel Flood. Vampire-Were relations were at an all-time high. After the umpteenth checkup and all signs of battle were cleared, the participants left. They hitched a ride to Fangtasia and reunited with Eric's corvette in the parking lot.

"Where are we going?" Kagome queried, staring at his profile.

"Home for a quick shower and change, but we could go anywhere you like," a knowing smirk curled his lips. "Not all of us have energy shields that could be used like a full-body raincoat to protect against gut splatters, _like some people_."

Flushing, embarrassed he'd caught her staring, she turned to the scenery whizzing by. "Do you have a girlfriend?" trying for nonchalance, she looked at his reflection on the car window. "Watch the road!"

"No," head swiveling back to the road, he answered. "Never had a 'girlfriend' in my life."

"Are you _one of those_ people who consider boyfriend a weird term and/or consider themselves above such plebian terms," a mocking lilt colored her voice, her gaze speculative, "or do you have relationship issues?"

"Actually, I prefer the term 'lover'," a bit chagrined, his tone might or might not have been a little defensive. "Can you really see me as anyone's _boy_friend though?"

"It's just a technical term, Eric," she quoted him in a sing-song, grinning cheekily.

"Minx!" ducking the hand that reached out to pinch her cheek, she blew a raspberry, forcing him to switch tactics. Raising a brow, he teased, "Why? Are you applying for the position?"

Rolling her eyes did nothing to disguise the creeping blush. "Oh please! Like I'm going to fall for that."

"Fall for what?" eyes innocent, he honestly looked confused, but she only shook her head. "I feel like I'm missing something here. Did I say something wrong?"

She gave him a wan smile. "No, sorry for being a downer. That was just me remembering I'm not exactly girlfriend material."

"Why, exactly?"

Refusing to answer, she shrugged.

Undaunted, he asked, "How many boyfriends have you had?"

"Just the one."

His head swiveled back to stare at her. "One?"

Not noticing his eyes were off the road again, she had a faraway look on her face. "_Kinda_ one. I dunno if he really counted, though. He sorta acted like it most of the time even though we never really discussed it, but he was still hung up on his ex-girlfriend and would go to her when she called. So…_maybe_, but it was mostly one-sided on my part. I wouldn't be surprised if it was all just in my head and he wasn't really into me at all."

A depressing thought, even after all these years. Embarrassing revelation over, she settled for remaining silent for the rest of the drive. Talk about buzz kill. _Way to go, Kagome._

Sensing the change of moods, he dogged her steps after they parked in the garage. "No other prospects?"

Relieved she hadn't entirely managed to destroy the light atmosphere, she pondered. "Well…there was this other guy who went around calling me his woman and was extremely vocal about his feelings, but he didn't really show it except for that one time he kidnapped me. I don't think he was really serious, though. I think most of it was so he could thumb his nose at that other guy who was still into his ex. He'd barely exchange a few words with me before he got off tangent and went off fighting with that other guy.

"Oh, and there was also a third one whom I've been schoolmates with for a long time. Really persistent, and really sweet—brought me a lot of presents to improve my health." She reminisced with a sad smile, explaining, "Grandpa used to invent these crazy stories about me having all kinds of diseases and sickness back in the day, and people actually believed him. But we all grew up and he eventually married one of my middle school friends." She shrugged, smiling a bit self-deprecatingly. "It wasn't for a lack of trying, but I'm not really girlfriend material. And after Souta turned, there wasn't really much time for silly frivolities…sooo…that's it."

Forming that kind of attachment to mortals didn't seem ideal anymore. She never really thought about it before, but now she sometimes wondered if this factored into Sesshoumaru's general attitude toward humans. What went through his mind whenever he looked at Rin, knowing her life was but a drop in his well? Treating humans with disdain, beneath his notice and unworthy to be his equals, but eventually falling into the same trap as his father's. How did it feel, to know the girl he'd grown to love like a daughter will eventually wither and die right before his very eyes?

The Dog General was a braver person than she was. He who loved and died for Inuyasha's mother. Most days, the reality of her situation hadn't really sunk in yet, or sometimes she would forget—but the one thing that remained constant was her lack of interest in forming a serious attachment with someone she would outlive by infinity. Pets had even become a taboo subject. Buyo died a few months into their journey and although she and her brother were both animal lovers who couldn't resist cooing over an occasional box of puppies or stray cat, showed absolutely no desire to replace their deceased pet.

"Does that make me the fourth contender?"

"What? _Really?_" genuinely surprised, she blinked owlishly. Then her gaze turned suspicious. "It's not because of the stuff that I could do, is it? Because if it is, you don't have to put on a show for me. I'll be at your disposal as long as Souta wants to stay."

"It's not because of that," he protested.

"Well it couldn't be because of the blood," voicing her thoughts out loud just as the garage door closed, she got out of the car. "Because the witches are gone now and you can go back to your regularly scheduled diet like before."

"As my Pet, I honestly thought you'd be a bit territorial and expect me to feed exclusively on you and survive on blood bags or artificial blood if you're not on hand."

"Eh? Why would I do that? Isn't our arrangement in name only? You give me the protection of being Yours and take Souta under your wing. In exchange, our powers are at your disposal, and if you need a donor, you can feed from me, too. Otherwise, you're free to choose whomever to drink from and I'm free to—"

Having absolutely no body issues, his suit jacket was off and shirt undone by the time they were through the garage door. Losing her train of thought, Kagome stared a bit dumbly at every inch of skin exposed as they stopped by the laundry room. Shucking his trousers off, he started a wash cycle wearing only his underpants.

"Free to…?" a gentle nudge in the direction of the stairs kept them moving, and he felt a keen sense of satisfaction at the look on her face. Earlier, he'd given her his blood on the sly, but he still couldn't feel her emotions.

Maybe it hadn't been enough to establish a connection? Perhaps it needed more time for the link to kick in? He wasn't above using his blood to gain a much needed advantage. If he had his way…

It was nice to know he wasn't the only one who could be rendered speechless, though. Ever since the siblings' introduction last night, he'd felt off kilter, out of his game. Desperate to catch the fish but not knowing with what to bait the hook with. Each time he thought he had her pegged, she did something unexpected. But at the moment, her response only seemed to be catatonia. In her dreamlike state, he easily maneuvered her to his room and into the bathroom. Naked, he poked her in the cheeks and had to repeat his questions a few times.

"What are you doing!" blinking rapidly, she snapped out of her haze.

"Taking a shower," he stepped into the water, only bothering to close the curtains halfway.

"But I…what are you…why… gah!" like a magnet, her eyes drifted south, widening into saucers. Was it supposed to look like that?

"You were saying…?"

It required a supreme act of will to drag her eyes up. "What?" Good lord it was as long as her arm!

"…_you're free to choose whomever to drink from and I'm free to_…"

"Um…" was she drooling? Because that would be embarrassing.

"Would you like to join me?"

The amusement in his tone was like a cold bucket of water. "No, thank you," she answered primly. Thankfully, her memory came to the rescue. "Free to get a boyfriend, if I wanted to."

Hands paused in the process of shampooing his hair, one eye scrutinized her, the other hidden under a veil of bubbles. "What."

Pretending she too could ignore the state of his undress if he wasn't bothered by it, she put the toilet lid down and made herself comfortable. Wrong move, she strangled another rising blush. It put her at perfect eye level with his crotch. "Is that not allowed?" she asked his bellybutton. "Because I would like to point out that you didn't say so when we made this arrangement earlier and if so, would like to lodge a complaint."

"Why? Do you already have your eye on someone in particular?"

Unaware of the terse note in his voice, she teased, "Welllll…not that I've met that many people yet, but Alcide seemed pretty cute. I kinda have a thing for canines." Unwittingly saving the wolf's life, she added, "He seemed pretty interested in Sookie though, so he's out. Are they a couple?"

"Not that I know of, but I'm not up to date with the local dating gossip," he answered through gritted teeth as he rinsed off.

"Oh, is this a sensitive subject for you?" she eyed him sympathetically. "Is Sookie your ex-girlfriend?"

Shrugging, he admitted, "No. In the effort for full disclosure, she intrigued me, but she was with Bill Compton at the time and she didn't reciprocate the feeling. I heard earlier they're not together anymore, but my interests lay elsewhere now." The significant look that he shot her was met with a blank one.

Blinking uncomprehendingly, she stared at him for a moment until a slow look of disbelief dawned on her face. "Who, _me_?!"

"Yes," he smiled.

"Are you serious?"

"Absolutely."

"For real now?"

"Is it really hard to believe?" he grew a little annoyed.

"Is this your idea of a joke?" she asked, not without a little suspicion.

Finished, he shut the water off and turned to her. "Does this look like a joke to you?" he asked as he stroked himself from root to tip.

Unwilling to distract herself with the hypnotic movement of his hand, she looked him in the eye despite the crick in her neck. "I'm sure there's a long line of women willing to help you with your…um…problem."

"I'm only interested in _you_, Kagome." Not bothering to cover himself as he toweled off, he stood directly in front of her. "Would you like to kiss it?" She almost headbutted his groin in her haste to stand up. A hand snaked around her waist to prevent her from fleeing, ignoring her pleas to let her go and cursing his unfair super strength. "I promise he won't bite. _You_, though, are free to nibble and suck all you like."

"This isn't funny, Eric," she bounced on the bed with a squeak. When he merely smiled and opened his closet, she sat up, staring death at him.

"Blue balls never is," he quickly dressed.

"You're not still hung up on an ex-love who might or might not have been revived as a soul-leeching clay zombie…are you?"

Shaking his head, he turned to stare at her. "What is with you and zombies?"

She shrugged. "You don't even know me. We've only known each other for two nights."

"I know enough, and I know I want you," in a blink, he pinned her to the mattress.

"_Enough?"_

"Lineage is easy to trace once you have access to the family registry," he rattled off the names and dates of birth and death of her father, mother, and grandparents on both sides. Apparently, combined with near photographic memory, he could list her relatives dating back a few centuries, complete with the more important notable events. "You and your brother lead surprisingly boring lives," he continued. "Nothing really raises a red flag, except for Souta being the prime suspect in your mother and grandfather's murders."

"That was Appius and Alexei," her measly strength was no match for his, but that didn't stop her from grabbing a handful of hair to stall the mouth aiming for her neck.

Thwarted, he grinned unrepentantly. "Didn't they eventually drop the charges though? Lack of evidence despite Souta's suspicious disappearance."

"We left the country as soon as Souta was able, and I never liked those detectives in the first place." At his questioning look, she shared, "We stowed away on a ship to China and backpacked from there. Souta couldn't place Appius' accent, but he recalled Alexei's and thought Russia was a good place to start as any. Bet you your snooping didn't tell you that, huh?" she said with a petulant tongue out.

When he nipped at it playfully, she eeped and used both hands to push his head away. Laughing, he lifted from the bed, carrying her close as he walked downstairs. There was something to be said about how much he enjoyed the feeling of her legs wrapped around his waist. "No other interesting tidbits, unless you count your numerous absences during middle school, and there was that time the roof of your gymnasium caved in… Were you in the middle of a play?"

"A sign from the heavens that I'm not actress material," she admitted dryly. "Where are we going?"

Hands strayed to parts unnecessary when he placed her in the car and buckled her in. "I thought we'd go shopping."

The streets were empty, the stars barely visible over the harsh glare of street lights. "Ooh, good idea! Can we go to a Wal-Mart? They should have everything we need in one place. Rice and bath salts and ice cream and a few small appliances that your surprisingly well-stocked kitchen doesn't have."

"You could make a list and I'll email it to my day man. He'll have everything ready by the time you wake up tomorrow," he looked apprehensive. "I was thinking more along the lines of clothes. Do you have enough that are bar-appropriate?"

"Hm," looking at her standard leggings and oversized sweater dress paired with cute but simple flats—more of a comfort over fashion person (and besides, rolled up leggings took way less space than jeans)—she could see his point. "I guess now that we're staying in one place, we could afford to get more clothes than those that would fit our luggage…and I guess we could spare some from the budget so long as I find a job sooner or later."

"You also have that money from tonight. There were a little over a thousand made, and half were given as freebies. The other half sold out, a lot of greedy bastards ordering in bulk, and Pam said the promise of more tomorrow was the only thing that prevented a riot."

"Eh? Oh…well, Pam provided the materials, Souta and I only did the labor, so maybe we could split the profits."

"No, it belongs to you. Pam has a lot of spare fabric just lying around or in storage, she won't miss what you used tonight."

Five hundred times fifty…her eyes rounded at the amount. "Speaking of which, I need to get more. Some brocaded fabric would be nice. Fifty dollars is _way_ overpriced for those little things, but on such short notice, we could give it to them in prettier cloth for tomorrow night at least." Grandpa sold handmade shrine trinkets for cheap, the most expensive going for (roughly converted) ten dollars a pop—fifteen, at most, for his specially made arrows. None of them were like the generic, most basic ones she and Souta made tonight.

"Vampires wouldn't care if it were made of gold _or dirt_, as long as it works. That's cheap compared to the protection they're getting now that necromancers seem like a dime a dozen now," he was still in disbelief at how one was right under his nose the whole time and didn't even know about it. "I'll talk to Clancy about adding it to the website. I'm sure we can increase the price and offer to ship it everywhere."

"Increase the… Why would you do that!? It's already expensive as it is! A first-grader could make a prettier one," she ended with embarrassed laughter. Grandpa was probably laughing himself sick in the afterlife.

"But will it work as good as yours?" he tweaked her nose. "With the level of paranoia Hallow's stunt caused, vampires will be lining up just to get one. And the beauty of it all is they have to renew it every year, so you'll have a steady source of income. You don't have to look for a job elsewhere, but if you really insist on working, I'll hire you as my _body_guard."

Mumbling under her breath, she rolled her eyes. "Pervert."

In the end, despite his clear reluctance, Kagome got her way. He stalked the aisles of Wal-Mart beside her, babbling about how she missed the comforts of home and marveled at the selection as she bought enough items to fill two carts. Thankfully, he didn't bring the corvette because who knows how they would've fit all of it in there. Pam, he decided, would be the one to tackle the task of outfitting the siblings in appropriate fashion. When asked, he'd cite the upcoming Vampire Summit as an excuse. Not that he had any complaints about how they dressed themselves, Kagome in particular, but first impressions were important and no one was going to look down on Kagome and their brother because of their clothes. Not if he could help it. He hoped she wasn't one of those persnickety humans who got their dander up whenever they received gifts—_or worse_—got their prides damaged because they considered it 'charity'.

He was relieved they didn't stay long, but she still paid—despite his insistence—and they were driving back home when he remembered that she didn't answer his earlier question. She didn't say _no_ either, he reflected, but where exactly did that leave them? He could hardly pass her a note with checkboxes for yes and no, and asking again would make him look desperate.

"Have you ever thought of becoming a vampire?" he asked instead.

She shook her head. "Not really. I could certainly appreciate the enhanced speed and strength, but if I become a vampire, who's going to feed my brother? Unless vampires could feed from other vampires…? _Can_ you survive on the blood of other vampires?"

"Technically, we can, but it's very rare to find vampires feeding on other vampires. You'd have to trust each other implicitly and hope the other doesn't take advantage of your vulnerability to slit your throat or drive a stake through your heart at close range. There's also the unfortunate, depending on how you see it, side-effect of gaining each others' strengths and/or weaknesses. In fact, you'll be lucky to walk away in a similar state as before you fed from or got fed on. There is almost a leech-like effect when we feed from our own kind, and the stronger/older one doesn't automatically come out on top. It's safer to just steer clear of it."

Humming, she considered that piece of information. "I guess _if I could_, if I really _really_ really had to, I wouldn't be opposed, but I don't think that'll ever happen. I'm just not vampire material." She'd have to die first, wouldn't she? Until she could get past that hurdle, vampirism was out of her reach. No super strength or speed for her, sadly. "How do you make a vampire, exactly? Souta recalls bits and pieces, and we don't know if we can really trust what we've gathered throughout the years. Is Pam your only child?"

"Vampires who have trouble controlling their bloodlust will find it difficult to sire children. The magic in charge of reanimating vampires is iffy at best, and going against the natural instinct to drain your prey instead of leaving just the smallest amount is difficult. I was _many_ centuries old before I attempted to make my first child and lucked out with Pam." Fascinated with the process, he held her full attention as he explained the details. "What did you do in Russia?"

She seemed to be in a sharing mood, recounting their travels. Language, they learned quickly, was the first big hurdle in their path. Almost as soon as they touched ground in China, they knew they were in way over their heads. "But we learned fast," she said, a little shifty-eyed. Their second encounter with vampires was just as off-putting as the first—one tried to take a chunk out of her before they could even say hello. Rusty from the lack of practice during his captivity and subsequent recuperation, Souta re-mastered his kata quickly and they both found out what happened when you added spiritual energy, shinai and a vampire in bloodlust.

It turned out that the guy was some sort of big shot, with many vassals who wanted revenge. Basically chased out of China, in the wrong direction thanks to her _superb_ navigation skills, they landed in Nepal and had to detour through India and some parts of the Middle East to climb back up to Russia. Passing the time by experimenting 'doodles on paper', among others, they tried to keep to themselves as much as possible, afraid of accidentally inciting the wrath of an angry mob again.

But super sleuths they were _not_, and their hunt proved fruitless. Learning about Alexei's human past was interesting, but offered no clues on where they could go next. With no definite destination in mind, they set out for Europe. In Poland, they met a fresh-faced vampire who was covered in blue runic tattoos, whom Eric surprisingly recognized as his old friend Godric.

"I thought he was dead. A lot of the older ones lose their zeal for life the longer they live," he admitted to Kagome, telling her about a vampire named Godfrey who met the sun recently in Texas.

She couldn't fault his assumption. The vampire they met carried an enormous guilt and grief about his existence. Apprehensive at first, he stayed with them for a short time and told them stories around the campfire. An aura of detachment and emptiness hovered around him, but he had been their biggest source of vampire facts—which they might or might not have taken as gospel—until Eric came along, and it was due to some offhand comment Godric made that planted the idea of going to America after vampires 'came out of the coffin'. Up until that point, the Higurashis drifted like a leaf in the wind, nomads with one main purpose and no sense of direction. Lost little orphans still clinging to the concept of home.

But story time had to be cut short once the garage doors closed.

"If you missed anything, call Bobby and he'll get it for you," he reminded as he helped unload her 'new shinies', amused at how much enjoyment she found in something as simple as a rice cooker.

"It would be nice if he knows of an Asian market nearby, but I don't want to trouble him."

"It's his job, Kagome," shaking his head, he told her a bit exasperatedly. "You could send him to Canada for a quick smoothie for all I care, he has to earn his keep somehow. He's extremely overpaid and a bit under worked."

She laughed, thinking he was joking.

"He was my personal assistant before the Revelation, and he literally pissed himself when he found out he'd been working for a vampire all along."

"Noo!"

"You wouldn't think it so funny if it were your carpet he made a puddle on," he added, smiling as she collapsed in giggles.

"Stop! You're just making that up!" she said in between laughs.

Moving quickly, he bodily trapped her on the kitchen counter. "Are you calling me a liar?" So tiny was she that he probably didn't need more than a pinky finger to lift her up to eye-level. "Why, I think I'd have to punish you for that." Learning from earlier, he gave her a moment's notice to brace for super speed. Using his elbows, he trapped her on the bed, tugged her sweater up, and unhooked her bra with expert fingers.

"Do you ever think of anything else?!" she ended with a moan, enjoying the mouth that suckled at a breast. Briefly, he switched sides and then journeyed up to fit his lips to hers. Tongues dueling, she couldn't resist running her hands through that beautiful head of hair as he angled his head over and over. Large fingers stroked her bottom, but she made no move to stop him until he reached for her leggings.

"Shhh," he murmured against her lips. "I won't do anything more tonight, I just want a taste."

_A taste of what?_ she wondered, but he dove for her as soon as he divested her of her panties. Eyes widening, she grabbed two handfuls of blond hair. "No, Eric! It's dirty!" but he merely chuckled and playfully nipped at her inner thigh.

The first lick sent her arching off the bed, letting go of his head in an effort to crabwalk out of his hold. But he held tight, hands firmly holding the tops of her thighs.

Soon, her protests turned into moans.

There was a definite advantage to not needing to breathe anymore.

Unfortunately for her, she still required air, and the gasps and mewls he coaxed from her combined with licking and sucking sounds made for a very lewd soundtrack. Legs propped up on broad shoulders, she flailed helplessly, torn between squeezing the blond head between her thighs and kicking him away. Gently, firmly, one long lick followed by a few short stabs of that expert tongue. Nuzzling and humming and rubbing and _oh god that tongue._

Her crisis came in an unexpected rush of pleasure, bringing both hands up to muffle her keening wail.

Allowing her no time to bask in the afterglow, he continued, adding a finger into the mix.

Boneless, weightless, and witless, she lost track of how many times she came. Sometimes he'd bring her to the edge and then pull away, nicking her thighs with his fangs or continuing to lick and suck everything but where it mattered most. He'd wait until she was mindless with need, pleading _please please please_ like a mantra, until he allowed her release.

Other times he'd use only the tips of his fingers, or the tip of his tongue, and pet her into insanity.

Carried away in the heat of the moment, she begged him to just _fuck her already_, but he kept his promise. He tortured her endlessly, but he kept his pants on. Briefly, it occurred to her to return the favor, but she had no more strength left, her limbs mysteriously turned into jelly. That didn't dim his enthusiasm, though. In fact, he seemed to get more and more excited the more demented she became with pleasure.

Unable to even lift her hands anymore, she was spread like a banquet as he feasted, throat hoarse from shouting. It could've been days, weeks, years…minutes. What was time?

Eric was in _heaven_.

He couldn't decide which tasted better—her pleasure or her blood. Both equally delicious, but perhaps her pleasure was more addicting. The sexy little mews she made at the back of her throat fired his blood. Eternity was not long enough to spend in his new favorite place, in between her legs. From now on, he wanted to wake up and have an early evening taste. Making a quick mental note, he promised himself he'd grab a bite whenever he caught a short break in the evenings, and then again just before sunrise so he could die for the day with the sweet nectar on his lips.

A millennia could've passed for all he cared, but it felt only seconds as far as he knew. Not enough, it wasn't enough. His pants pocket vibrated, but he ignored it. More, more, more.

"Shouldn't you get that?" her voice, barely a whisper, cracked.

While he could've ignored the persistent buzzing of his phone forever, Pam's emotions leaking into the bond were a little distracting. Phantom chest pain was also starting to intrude from that new thread he now knew was his bond with Souta… Reluctantly pulling away, he gave her one last lick and reached for his phone.

His eyes roamed appreciatively over the beautiful tableau in front of him. Disheveled hair, eyes glazed with passion, legs spread giving him a perfect view of her pretty pink lips. He clicked answer and listened to the nervous babble of his child.

Sensing something was amiss, Kagome weakly sat up. "What is it?" With heroic effort, she pushed her sweater down, covering the growing blush that invaded from head to chest. Panties and leggings required too much strength that she currently didn't have.

Blue eyes trained on him like a hawk, he tried to keep his expression as neutral as possible. "I don't want you to panic, but…" he licked his lips, "Souta's been shot."

ㅋㅋㅋ


End file.
